


An Eventful Year Or Two

by afteriwake



Category: Sherlock (TV)
Genre: Birthday Cake, Birthday Fluff, Birthday Party, Christmas Dinner, Christmas Fluff, Domestic Fluff, Established Sherlock Holmes/Molly Hooper, F/M, Family Fluff, Found Family, Happy Molly Hooper, Happy Sherlock, John moves out, Looking forward to the future, Morning Sickness, One Big Happy Family, Pregnant Molly Hooper, Quarantine, The Year 2021, The year 2020, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, Unplanned Pregnancy, a year in the life, toasts
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-27
Updated: 2021-01-31
Packaged: 2021-03-13 05:27:21
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,596
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29023452
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/afteriwake/pseuds/afteriwake
Summary: 2020 was a hard year, but 2021 is much, much better.
Relationships: Sherlock Holmes/Molly Hooper
Comments: 16
Kudos: 61
Collections: Sherlolly Secret Santa: 2020





	1. 2020

**Author's Note:**

  * For [MizJoely](https://archiveofourown.org/users/MizJoely/gifts).



> So this is a two part fic for **MizJoely** for her 2020 Sherlolly Secret Santa mod gift! The first chapter is an overview of 2020, because the second part is the actual answer to the prompt " _Here's to 2021 being a better one for us all._ "

It helped that Sherlock, Molly, John and Rosie had all quarantined together. Sherlock and John were used to spending extended amounts of time together, and the addition of Molly and Rosie to the mix had made things more interesting. Not necesarilly easier; tell any toddler they couldn’t go outside and there would be fussing, but they at least had three adults to help manage.

As scary and uncertain as 2020 had been, things seemed to improve towards the middle of the year. The first thing they did was move out of Baker Street en masse to Molly’s home for Christmas, with Mrs. Hudson’s blessings. Rosie already had her own room, Sherlock and Molly shared the master bedroom and John took over the guest bedroom. The addition of a backyard play center helped Rosie alleviate some of her boredom and energy, and the playhouse John and Sherlock insisted on building from scratch looked a little odd, but Rosie adored spending time in there with the newest member of their makeshift family, a dog named Blackbeard.

It wasn’t going to last forever, they all knew that; John and Rosie deserved a home of their own and Sherlock and Molly’s budding relationship meant they needed some privacy. John was considered a frontline worker, as was Molly, and there were scares the necessitated covid testing for them all. Rosie didn’t like having things poked up her nose and it broke the adult’s hearts when she needed to be put through it, but in the end John found a nice home for him and Rosie that didn’t have the memories of Mary attached and they moved out in April.

After one scare too many Molly took a sabattical from Barts to do some of the other work she’d been putting off, the research papers and things she wanted to do. She’d seen too many people die of the illness to not be affected by it, and Sherlock held her as she cried and never argued when she spent hours railing against idiots who didn’t wear their masks and went to the pubs like everything was normal. It wasn’t normal, he knew that, and he wore his masks without comment and always made sure there was hand sanitizer around.

As it wore on and on, Sherlock felt an itch to do something. His consulting business of private clients had tapered off, and when Rosie had been there Lestrade had been loathe to call him in to consult on the scene. Video conferencing with the inspector and Donovan helped, as did the cases he could solve without leaving Molly’s home, but he wanted to do more. John had the suggestion he do cases by video conference. Easy stuff, but interacting with clients again helped.

And then the year slowly wound down to a close, with this new normal of keeping distance, wearing masks and the like. When the vaccine became available, Molly and John were among the first to receive shots. Mycroft made sure Sherlock got his first shot as well, just in case he needed his brother to do something out in the field. Sherlock said it proved Mycroft had a heart after all.

Christmas morning was spent with just him and Molly, and he didn’t mind that very much, though she missed her family and John and Rosie. He hated to admit it, but he missed all of his found family as well. It had been a long year, but it could only get better.

John and Rosie had both tested negative and been careful and they came over for Christmas supper. Rosie had grown so much in the eight months she’d mostly been at her own home, and she was proud to show off. The backyard playset was in use once again, and John broached the idea of Molly and Sherlock watching her sometimes; he had live-in help now, but Rosie missed her Aunt Molly and Uncle Sherlock so much.

Over dinner they enjoyed a glass of wine and really caught up over things. Plans started to be made with careful visits in the future. Sherlock broached leaving his home to handle some of the cases he had. Molly was thinking about going back to Barts in a teaching capacity more than handling the morgue. And John was happy to share his own good fortune, that he was dating the nanny and they were doing well, and maybe he’d introduce them in person in the next week.

That evening, after the food had been put away and John and Rosie had gone home, Sherlock and Molly laid in bed, Molly’s head on Sherlock’s chest. “It’s been an eventful year,” he said.

“It has.”

“I think next year will be better,” he replied. “At least, I have hope it will be.”

“Me too,” Molly said, lifting her head up to look at him. “But if we’re together, we can get through anything, I think.”

“I think so too.” She leaned in and kissed him softly, and when they were done she put her head on his chest again. “Molly?”

“Yes?” she asked, lifting her head up again.

“I love you.”

She smiled at him and said “I love you too” in response before he reached for her for another kiss and more. Yes, as long as they were together, they could get through anything, it seemed. They’d gotten through 2020...2021 opened up a whole new avenue of things, all with the veneer of hope splashed over it. They’d make it through, together.


	2. 2021

**January**

“Happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you, happy birthday dear Sherlock, happy birthday to you!” The assorted voices on the Zoom meeting sang the traditional birthday greeting as Molly brought out the cake. It had chocolate ganache and chocolate covered honeycomb on it, and Sherlock’s mouth salivated not just at the cake, but the thought of being alone with the woman who made it. He’d made a New Year’s resolution to be more social, but right now he just wanted Molly, giving her a grin and watching her blush and Lestrade and john continued the song with some bawdier lyrics.

Delayed gratification...it would be worth it.

**February**

“Chocolate covered fortune cookies, eh?” Molly asked. “Doesn’t seem like a particularly Valentine’s Day gift to me.”

“But they’re delicious,” Sherlock said, opening up the individually wrapped packet and cracking the fortune cookie in half. He pulled out the fortune. “’Your fondest wishes are coming true,’” he read out loud.

“My fondest wish would be to get these cookies done for John and Rosie,” Molly said, leaning over the open oven door.

“My fondest wish is for you to forget about the cookies and spend the rest of the evening in bed with me.”

Molly wiggled her arse a bit and looked over her shoulder. “Is that so?”

“Tease.” 

“Don’t you know it.”

**March**

“Green suits you. It definitely brings out a new color in your eyes.”

Sherlock looked at the tight fitting button down shirt he was wearing. “You really think so?”

“You look dashing.” She donned her mask, a gaudy affair with corgis and pots of gold, and he smiled behind his, a simple black mask with nose piece. It kept the glasses he now had to wear from fogging up. Age touched them all, and in his case, it affected his sight. He loved the way Molly looked at him when he wore his glasses, so he wore them all the time. 

“We could always tell Mrs. Hudson you’re ill again,” he said, sliding his arms around her waist and resting his chin on top of her head.

“No, no, we’ve all been good, and it will be nice to have dinner together again. But if I look ill I’ll lie down, all right?”

“All right.”

**April**

The first day of the month and he was pacing outside the toilet, waiting while Molly went and peed on a stick. It had been small symptoms, small signs, but none that worried them enough to think it was covid-19. But when she’d spent a week straight bolting towards the loo each morning, Sherlock and Molly both thought it was time to know for sure if their Valentine’s Day dalliance had led to more.

“Well?”

“Positive,” Molly said as she opened the door. “I’m pregnant?”

“Are you pregnant or aren’t you?”

“I am! Two lines and all that. But...I’m pregnant.”

He puled her into an embrace. “We’re going to be parents.”

She wrapped her arms around him tightly. “Yes, we are.”

**May**

“And flowers for the mother-to-be,” Sherlock said, gesturing to the bouquet of roses lying on the tray with breakfast and some decaf coffee. They still argued over her coffee intake, but he supposed if it was decaf it wasn’t _so_ bad.

“Oh, they’re lovely!” Molly said, her eyes wide. “Thank you, Sherlock. But Mother's Day is in March.”

“But today is Mother's Day in the States, and we didn't know you were pregnant in March. I got you all the things you’ve been asking for, though I will admit I was Skyping with Mrs. Hudson to figure out how to make the eggs benedict,” he said. She took a bite and grimaced, and he frowned. “I did it wrong?”

“No, no, I just…” Her eyes went wide and her hand went over her mouth, and he lifted the tray off her lap so she could toss back the covers and bolt to the loo. Well, when she was done, hopefully she could enjoy her surprise...

**June**

“I bought you something,” Molly said.

“Oh?” Sherlock asked, looking at the notes John had sent him from their latest case. It was awkward doing things with email and voice chats, but not so awkward that personal clients weren’t picking up. John was back on his blog and readership had increased; even with quarantine rules becoming more lax, people needed entertainment. He looked up to see a gift in her hands, wrapped in blue paper.

“I thought we weren’t finding out the sex of the baby until next month,” he said with a frown.

“Oh that. I didn’t get a say in the color. Amazon picked it.”

“Oh.” He took the gift and opened it, and a soft smile spread over his face as he saw the bee covered frame that said “Bee is for Best Dad.” “I love it,” he said softly.

“I thought you would.” Molly came over and kissed him softly. “Happy Father’s Day.”

“Thank you.”

**July**

The cool gel on her stomach was a nice change from the heat. There had been a heat wave for the last week and she was cranky and irritable as she was starting to show and she needed new clothing and new shoes. He loved her all the same, which helped, but right now heat and cold was the last thing on her mind as the wand pressed into her belly.

“Congratulations, Molly, Sherlock. It’s a boy.”

“We’re having a son,” Sherlock said in awe.

“We can name him after you, call him William,” Molly said, looking up at him. His gaze was fixed on the sonogram screen though. “Sherlock?”

“You want to give him my name?”

“Of course. I couldn’t think of any other name I want our son to have more.”

When they got home, he tenderly made love to her, and when she fell asleep against him, he pressed his hand to her belly. “William,” he said softly, a wide smile on his face.

**August**

“It’s not the same as a regular baby shower, but my friends don’t want to make anything riskier,” Molly said. “They all ordered gifts from the registry and I’ve been keeping them in their boxes. It will be like one of those unboxing videos, except my friends will be watching on Zoom.”

“Are you sure that’s what you want?” Sherlock asked. Her feet were on his lap as she laid down on the sofa, and he was massaging her feet.

“Well, it’s what’s best,” she said.

“You deserve a proper baby shower.”

“Sherlock, it’s alright. You’ll be here, and this way I can have my brother and sister-in-law in the States take part, and your mum, and even…”

“You want Eurus to take part?” he asked, surprised.

“She’s family,” she said. “And Mycroft said she was interested.”

“If you’re sure.”

“I’m sure.”

**September**

He knew she didn’t mind them not being married when she gave birth. Their son would have his last name and it was a given that at some point, they would get married and she would hyphenate his last name with hers. Or at least that’s what he assumed. But he didn’t want to wait. He wanted the satisfaction of knowing she was his wife _now_.

He’d proposed over dinner one night early in the month, then bullied his brother into getting them a special license. Everyone took the covid-19 test before the ceremony and while it was small, it was heartfelt. Their honeymoon was a night at a luxury hotel in London, but it was all right.

Molly Holmes, it turned out, wouldn’t have had it any other way.

**October**

“Do you really want all that candy?”

“Sherlock, if you’re about to tell me I’m too fat…”

“No! But your brother sent you candy I haven’t had in years.” He gave her puppy dog eyes. “Please share the Halloween candy? Please?”

Molly laughed and handed him an almond Snickers. “He knew the best birthday present was chocolate and a lot of it,” she said.

“He’s the best brother-in-law I could ask for,” Sherlock said in a giddy voice, unwrapping the miniature candy bar and popping it in his mouth.”

“Your son agrees, though it’s uncle for him,” she said. “He hasn’t stopped moving all day.” She opened up a Payday bar and took a bite. “Soon you’ll be out and eventually we’ll have to share with you, William.”

“But not this year.”

“No, not this year.”

**November**

Molly was tired, but she couldn’t help staring lovingly at the image of her husband holding their son by the hospital window. Fourth day of the month she’d been feeling a little rowdy and had seduced her husband, and then at two in the morning her water had broken. It had been a difficult labor, but there were perks to being related to the British Government, and a room in the most elite obstetrics ward in London was it.

After twelve hours of labor, with “Hey Jude” playing softly on the radio, William Sherlock Scott Holmes II had entered the world, wailing with a healthy set of lungs. They hadn’t had visitors yet, but with the quarantine practically lifted, come Christmas she expected everyone would see him.

But first, sleep, as her husband hummed something original to put them both to sleep.

**December**

Another year, another Christmas. It had been a year of ups and downs, but mostly ups, and mostly happiness. There were more visitors for dinner this year; Mrs. Hudson, Lestrade and his new wife and Mycroft, but it was a Christmas dinner at Baker Street that they all pitched in and made together. Even Mycroft brought cake and plum pudding, and stayed long enough to pull a cracker and wear a hat.

As the evening wore on, and Rosie and William dozed in the laps of their fathers, Molly raised her glass. “To an eventful year,” she said.

The others raised their glasses in toast. “To an eventful year,” they chorused. Molly looked over at Sherlock and smiled. Now, they just had to see what 2022 brought...


End file.
